From Malay Mail · · 2m
Big AI wants to police itself. Critics smell a cartel
OpenAI, Google and Anthropic are building a self-regulatory body for AI safety, but smaller rivals and lawmakers don't trust them.
In brief
OpenAI, Google and Anthropic are building a self-regulatory body for AI safety, but smaller rivals and lawmakers don't trust them. The biggest AI companies are creating their own safety standards body, sparking fears they're forming a cartel that will shut out competitors and avoid real regulation. Originally reported…
AI giants team up on safety
OpenAI, Anthropic and Google are creating a standards body to test powerful AI systems before public release. The idea came from Google DeepMind's Demis Hassabis.
Modeled on Wall Street watchdog
The proposed body would work like the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority that oversees US brokers. It would need substantial funding, mostly from the industry itself.
“Funding would need to be substantial and likely mostly come from industry, in order to attract world-class technical talent”
Altman backs industry coordination
OpenAI's CEO says collaboration shows the industry wants enough time to develop AI safely. He worries public fear grows when companies seem unwilling to do the right thing.
“I think it's great for our industry to say we want to come together and we want to coordinate”
Smaller rivals cry cartel
Cohere CEO Aidan Gomez accused dominant American AI labs of forming a cartel under the guise of safety. He says the real dispute is over who writes the rules.
“The dispute is over who writes them, who gets to participate and whose interests the rules are protecting”
Researchers quit over safety fears
Jacob Coxon left Anthropic warning that AI labs were gambling with our lives. Former Google DeepMind researcher Bilal Chughtai said AI has the potential to kill us all.
“I earnestly believe that AI has the potential to kill us all, and that we might be running out of time”
Top CEOs call for slowdown
Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei asked for slower AI development on Saturday. Sam Altman, Elon Musk and Demis Hassabis all supported the idea.
Sanders demands binding rules
Senator Bernie Sanders says tech leaders can't be trusted to honour voluntary pledges. When humanity's future is at stake, we need binding international safety rules.
“When the future of humanity is at stake, we need binding international safety rules, not voluntary standards”
Altman says accidents are inevitable
The OpenAI CEO warned that AI accidents, both small and large, can't be avoided. He wants transparent reporting and quick learning to avoid bigger catastrophic incidents.
“Accidents with any new technology are unavoidable, and we should have a great culture of transparent reporting”
Trump dismisses AI warnings
President Donald Trump called warnings about AI risks hoaxes on Monday. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang also pushed back, calling the predictions alarming and irresponsible.
Nvidia chief thanks Trump
Jensen Huang thanked Trump for seeing through the AI warnings during a phone call at a Los Angeles conference. Nvidia's chips power most AI systems, and Huang advises Trump.
The bottom line
The biggest AI companies are creating their own safety standards body, sparking fears they're forming a cartel that will shut out competitors and avoid real regulation.
